Polish Officer in NATO, Col. Ryszard Kukliński.

Some post-commie scumballs have again defaced the Kraków memorial to the First Polish Officer in NATO, Col. Ryszard Kukliński who supplied American wtih the Evil Empire's secret plans. I doubt if Michnik was actually involved physically, but it was his rag that has called Kukliński a traitor and Jaruzelski a hero, and apparently there are those in Poland who actually believe the crapola Gazeta Wybiórcza publiishes..Apparently Michnik has never heard of Konrad Wallenrod.

There is however a universal principal that a soldier does not betray his vow. Ever.

European history provides quite a few examples when a professional mercenary's vow was broken by condottieri at will. Mamertines anyone? Machiavelli describes many such cases: desertion, joining forces with enemy, switching sides.

I vaguely remember mercenary betrayals taking place during wars of Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy against Lorraine and Suisse, and his death at Nancy.

Polish allies at times: Crimean Tatars and Cossacks were also prone to betrayal.

General Patrick Gordon, a venerated Scottish mercenary, after already switching sides from the Polish to the Muscovite one (honourably though), was almost given a deadly blow to his division during 1695 campaign against Turks, because a German engineer betrayed to Turks the weak points of the Muscovite lines.

So it looks that there is a difference between romantic theory and practice.

"I swear by God this sacred oath that to the Leader of the German empire and people, Adolf Hitler, supreme commander of the armed forces, I shall render unconditional obedience and that as a brave soldier I shall at all times be prepared to give my life for this oath."

Apparently all those PF-ers who are tripping over thermselves trying to show how sacred and iniviolable an oath or vow is to be are just doing so because they enjoy polemics. Many of the very same people hypocitically let off the hook and make excuses for the bastards who take an oath and then break it for convnience sake to get divorced. At least Kukliński was motivated by higher values, the freeedom of his homeland, and was willing to put himself and his familyat jeopardy to serve that cause.